Skunkworks - New Reactive Materials for Art and Design

Abstract

Project-based teaching and learning plays a vital role in the creative education sector and achieves more often true discoveries in the classroom than lecture based pedagogics can accomplish. In particular in art and design related courses, such methodology not only brings out more creative, accomplished and independent designers, but fosters innovations and new applications in the field. (Bonwell and Eison, 1991; Sivan et al, 2001) Yet, due to increasing student numbers and associated shortage of individual consultation time, the provision of such environments is often difficult to realize. Without intensive re-structuring, this project-based method seems simply not applicable for larger classes. As a result, we see a shift from a project-based teaching using applied art and design methodologies to a lecture based problem-oriented format. Sadly, while informative, this format does not allow students to experiment with design and materials through the process of making and ultimately decreases the quality of the student experience, learning and output in the context of a discovery enriched curriculum. In particular in the creative field of art and design, this has led to an exclusivity of project-based approaches, which are now often reserved for elite private institutions with substantial larger funding and significant smaller classes.